The objectives of the proposed research are (1) to use the cross-cultural survey method in order to complete the analysis of data I collected on dispute settlement procedures in the Fiji islands and (2) to assess the results of my analysis in order to determine whether my model linking the dispute settlement process in Fiji to (a) a specific social-structural arrangement, (b) a specific type of dispute, and (c) specific child-rearing practices may reasonably be used in further cross-cultural studies of the dispute settlement process and the factors that influence this process. Specifically, the Fiji data suggest that apology is an important means of settling disputes in cultures in which (a) there is significant status differentiation within the domestic group; (b) there are a significant number of disputes arising over insults; and (c) there is strong inculcation in early childhood of the trait of responsibility and no, or only weak, inculcation of the traits of aggressiveness, competitiveness, and self-reliance. During the project period, data on these variables will be coded on a stratified random sample of 60 societies and statistical tests will be performed to determine if one or more of the posited relationships can be presumed to represent functional relationships in Fiji as well as in other societies around the world.